Saudi Returning to Southern Oregon To Face Charges

Yazeed Mohammed Abunayyan, the 19-year old Saudi Arabian accused of ramming two police cars in February before causing a disturbance on an airplane two days later, is headed back to Jackson County Circuit Court. Abunayyan pled guilty in a Portland court Monday to a federal charge related to the plane incident, was sentenced to time served and fined.
Family members say Abunyyan suffers from schizophrenia and stopped taking his medication weeks before the incidents. He led police on a low-speed chase before ramming two patrol cars. He had signed an agreement after his arrest to not leave the state.
On February 21, Abunyyan boarded a plane headed for Houston. The plane was forced to return to Portland 30 minutes after take off, because Abunyyan created a disturbance after an attendant asked him to put out an e-cigarette. In that incident, the accused allegedly hit two other passengers, yelled obscenities and made a reference to Osama bin Laden.